Content

Increasingly governments use policy to steer education and training towards national interests. At the same time, however, globalisation pressures governments to respond in ways determined beyond national interests. This leads to significant local/global tensions. This unit addresses both the wider issues of cultural difference in the context of globalisation and the internationalisation of education as well as policy issues arising from and relevant to local practices, interests and values. The focus is on theoretical and critical perspectives towards policy, in particular the new policy sociology, and requires students to reflect on practice, theory, and current public sector and educational policy environments. Students have a range of options - to consider issues of doing policy work in their own workplaces, to develop policies that focus on a relevant public sector educational or training issue with some practical outcomes in mind, to consider policy scenarios. Or students can undertake a cross cultural analysis of policies. All assignments require considerations of the equity implications of policy work.

Assessment

The assessment comprises of two assignments, both essays (50% and 3000 words each), with possible negotiation on the nature of the second assignment to meet specific circumstances.

These assignments should indicate that the student understands the derivations and theoretical concepts of the new policy sociology, and that the student can undertake a critical analysis of policy. The second assignment focuses more on applying these understandings in a particular context, and the issues arising in the process of policy production. This requires some clear notions of the process of policy implementation.